- Stellantis asked students to design the future of SRT performance.
- Winners span hypercars, muscle reinterpretations, and a motorcycle.
- Each takes a different angle on speed, power, and attitude.
Dodge just announced the winners of its Drive for Design contest and the winners are impressive. These aren’t trained designers. They’re kids that are still in school but you wouldn’t know it looking at some of the results. Among them we’ll see cars with yellow hoods, one with a hammock instead of a back seat, and the spiritual successor to the batty Viper V10-powered Tomahawk motorcycle.
The design brief from Dodge was simple: show us what the future of SRT performance looks like. Let’s kick things off with the two youngest winners, Catherine Codouni, a first grader, and Richie LeBlanc, a fifth grader. Each submitted a single angle of the cars they designed.
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Codouni’s sketch leans heavily into color and a mix of old-school shapes. Up front, there’s a clear tie to recent models like the Challenger, but out back, it appears that what we’re looking at is some sort of shooting brake. If Dodge takes one thing from this competition, a shooting brake muscle car sounds like a fabulous option.
LeBlanc went a decidedly more hardcore direction. His sports car has some Porsche-esque curves, a classic Dodge crosshair grille, and some serious hood ducting. Honestly, if it ends up being a basis for a next-gen Viper, there’s plenty to love. Now, let’s turn our attention to the older kids who made a big splash in this competition.
In eighth grade, Jaxon Brobst came up with one of the most intriguing designs here. His SRT Ram Charger isn’t a truck, or an SUV, or even a muscle car, really. It’s a combo of all of those things in a way. It looks akin to a lifted 2040 Charger almost.
It comes with giant off-road tires, a UAV/drone baked into the hood, a spare tire on the back, glass in the doors to better see the trail, and yes, a hammock rather than a back seat. I just want to see this come to life for the videos of someone trying to take a nap while the driver sends it over a jump at 50 mph.
Finally, let’s look at our top three placeholders, starting with Javier Espino and his Nighthawk SRT. It’s a great name because it’s a spiritual successor to the Tomahawk, and it looks the part. No telling what powers it, but the styling is aggressive without being overdone.
In second place we have 12th grader Owen Bronso with his SRT Mayhem. It sources inspiration from fighter jets and Dodge’s classic muscle cars. The result is angular, with what appears to be a central driving position. It would look very at home on a racetrack.
This year’s winner, Felix Bucaro, is also in 12th grade. His design is called the Warhawk. It also takes inspiration from military planes but the result is less angular and more rounded off. In fact, take a look at it compared to Dodge’s own SRT Tomahawk Vision Gran Turismo released in 2015 and the resemblance is uncanny. Maybe the brand is still considering something truly off the rails for its next halo car. We can only hope.
